ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
(OP)
Gas station sells ethanol free 91 octane for 15% more money compared to E10 87 octane. is it worth the extra money if my car is fine with regular gas? I read somewhere that E10 gas causes up to 5% loss in fuel economy and damage to seals and gaskets.





RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
If the vehicle is older than the 1990's then MAYBE there might be material compatibility issues. Newer ones shouldn't have a problem with 10% ethanol.
BUT ... If you are planning to store the vehicle for a while ... it may be worth filling up the last couple times prior to storage using the ethanol-free stuff.
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
OLD vehicles can conceivably have a problem but if a 30 year old fuel pump diaphragm gives up the ghost, can you really say it was due to 10% ethanol?
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RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
I have a Yamaha 90 horse 4 stroke outboard that I used to have to rebuild the carbs at least twice a year when using the E10. No chemical potions seemed to help and the boat is used at least 20 hours a month, sometimes much more -- The E10 fuel seemed to cause the very small holes in the emulsion tube to get clogged with something that only comes out with ultrasonic baths and shop air.
This was/is my experience with E10 in outboard motors. In May 2011 I spent $1600 in a month on carb and fuel system parts. I had a fleet of 16 boats with 4 to 6hp 4 stroke motors, we had no problems with these until ethanol was added to gasoline. Current experience says if the motor is used every day the ethanol is a good thing keeping excess water out of the fuel. If the boat sits for a week then it is a bad thing, once phase separation starts. You get all of the evils pmrobert mentions.
I would say if you have the opportunity to get ethanol free gasoline for boat use, use it if the boat is going to sit between uses.
I personally side stepped the problem by switching to propane motors.
B.E.
You are judged not by what you know, but by what you can do.
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
prices here per liter:
$1.48 premium E10 (94 octane)
$1.44 premium ethanol free (91 octane)
$1.42 premium E10 (91 octane)
$1.36 midgrade E5 (89 octane)
$1.34 midgrade E10 (89 octane)
$1.26 regular E10 (87 octane)
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
Doug
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
With 10% ethanol gas I get consistently better than the EPA highway estimate for my car driving long trips (500+ miles each way) on the interstates at 75+ mph. I keep the receipts and average over the entire round trip, I tend to drive the same routs several times a year. I think these are as accurate a measurement as you are going to get on the street. A little over 28 mpg in spring or fall and 27 mpg in the summer when the AC is working hard. Winter tends to drop into the high 26's but I run different tires.
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/noframes/18332.shtm...
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RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
Fe (IronX32)
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
"Schiefgehen will, was schiefgehen kann" - das Murphygesetz
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
On an energy-content basis, E85 has about 77% the energy content of E10, and the car seems to have done a little better than that. Ethanol is not a bad fuel, IF the engine is designed to run on it!
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
RE: ethanol free gas - worth the extra money?
"Schiefgehen will, was schiefgehen kann" - das Murphygesetz